Doyin Okupe offers to assist Buhari's Govt on Economy

Senior Special Assistant to former President Goodluck Jonathan on public affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, has offered to assist the present administration to revive the economy.

Okupe, who made the statement through his Facebook platform, yesterday, said present price of crude oil hovering between $26 and $28 US dollar directly undermined the profitability of the crude oil enterprise, as the cost of production of crude in Nigeria is about $30 USD, second only to Russia.

Okupe was known for his attacks on President Muhammadu Buhari during the 2015 elections campaign. But in his facebook, he said the volatility of oil prices in the international market was threatening the stability of the Nigerian economy.

Okupe said: “The danger signal here is clear and profound. The implication of this price regime is that we begin to lose $4-$2 USD for every barrel of crude oil we produce. It is pertinent to state clearly here that this ominous situation is totally out of the control of the present administration.

But because we are all stakeholders in the Nigerian project and also for the fact that any external threat to the survival or interest of Nigeria calls for a bipartisan cooperation, it becomes imperative that we all put all heads together to find a solution.”

He called on the federal government to readjust the 2016 budget by reducing recurrent expenditure by 50%, and make capital expenditure to focus mainly on projects that will directly impact on production and export driven initiatives.

“The deficit in the budget must be reduced substantially while the bench mark is brought lower to between $17 & $20 USD.”